Mystery with baby rabbits, advice requested

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ladysown

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Born June 7 to a rescued doe.

Seven kits.

Of the seven THREE at this point seem fine.

of the remaining four

1. Black otter : entropathic illness from what I could tell, is coming around, eating again, I think it will be fine.

Of the remaining three
They simply STOPPED. I don't know how else to describe it. They stopped eating, moving, drinking, pooping, peeing.. they just stopped. It was kinda like they zombied on me.. or zoned out.

I have NEVER seen the like before.

I don't know if mom is still feeding them. And it matters not as I've now got them in isolation away from mom to help protect the other three. They also have a water bowl as well as a bottle.

My treatment plan at this point since in Canada you can't just buy meds for your stock anymore...need vet approval for so much it's nuts at times.

1. twice a day I dunk them in water. THIS seems to have had the most success as now TWO of them are drinking and eating again. One of these two was actually binking again. This has been three days in and they are just regaining energy today.
2. various types of food offered: Fresh greens, grain mix, pellets, etc.
3. water bowl as well as a bottle.

The one I am most concerned about at this point... is grinding it's teeth and drinking, drinking, drinking. Won't eat. When not drinking sits like a zombie. It's not bloated, feels like a skinny reed.

I don't know what else to try and next step is euthanization.

I've seen no evidence of spiders. Or other small critters in the cage. Trimmed nails yesterday and noted mom had a messy bum but this was AFTER the kits took ill. She eats like a horse and always has.

All rabbits get fed the same and this is the only cage with problems and I've three other litters besides this one.

Thoughts? Ideas?
 
A long time ago -- well before RabbitTalk -- I had a litter that exhibited similar problems, as best I can remember. I ended up culling them all. Still no idea what caused the problem and I never saw it again.
 
MaggieJ":1aky57r6 said:
A long time ago -- well before RabbitTalk -- I had a litter that exhibited similar problems, as best I can remember. I ended up culling them all. Still no idea what caused the problem and I never saw it again.



That was my first thought - Cull them all including the dam to protect the rest of my herd.

They just aren't worth risking the years of work put in.
 
oddest thing this litter

The drinker/grinder found dead this morning in a puddle of liquid (assuming pee from drinking so much). Buried it in the ground where I don't pick weeds for the rabbits.

The other three.

Black Otter bouncy happy eating.. acting perfectly normal.

Broken orange EATING!!!! binking! but still a bit off.

Broken black. Eating. moving sluggishly and very carefully but moving.

Dunked all three again in water this morning and they hopped around in the pail trying to get out.. again.. an improvement.

GO FIGURE.

I dunno what happened with them but improvement seen wont be culling unless a down swing occurs.

The three left with mom are totally normal younglings. I really really don't understand it.
 
I wondered about that too, SixGun. But I've known Ladysown on the forums for many years and she has extensive experience and much success with her methods . . . so I trust she knows what she is doing.

All the same, Ladysown, if you would explain a little more about how this helps, it could benefit all of us.
 
I've been thinking about it, and I guess I could see that maybe the water would shock them out of any haze they were in, but, only momentarily, and it would tax their nervous systems to the point that they would just shut down. But I'm always willing to learn something, especially that will help kits.
 
I have used water dunking for the past four-five to get rabbits to drink who are shocky or stressed or ill to get them to drink.
it works FAR easier then using a syringe on them. They don't choke or snort or get it down the wrong pipe. and I don't stress them by handling them anymore than they want me to.

Rabbits swim REALLY REALLY well. I used to let them swim in a small tub (until it broke from an active four year old going OOPS sorry mommy)

but now I just put two-three inches in a tall pail and set young rabbits down in it. They sit for a a minute or so until their bottom half is well wetted. It is a safe way to get water into bunnies who WILL NOT EAT or drink.

Then I put them back in their cage, they act all offended and then start licking themselves dry. Those that don't immediately start doing that I know won't make it and I cull them. They go to a raptor rescue who picks them up whenever I have enough to warrant the trip.

This is a spring/summer/early fall protocol only.

Use lukewarm water...not hot or cold. Cold shocks them, hot well.. just don't go there with buns. Lukewarm works.

It's also a great way to force a gassy bunny to move. Movement helps the digestive system to work. And water supports them, gets their legs moving, which helps their body move. They can't just sit in a corner feeling sorry for themselves. (I used do this). Now I just dunk, see if they lick their fur... if they do I can save them, if they don't they've already given up.

At this point I have two of the three eating well and acting pretty normal, the sluggish one is still sluggish but eating. Still playing the wait and see game with them. They still huddle together like they aren't quite right so... we'll see how they go.

Was talking with a niece who studied to be a vet but changed her focus a year before graduating. She suspects mom stopped nursing and they were hit by "stupid" (as in not finding the water bottle) and possibly a genetic issue. She tends NOT to think genetics because the other half of the litter is doing just as they should. She suspects the fact that I feed greens was their saving grace as it got liquid into them.
 
thanks. :)

Ending up culling sluggish kit. Seemed fine internally like the other.. so it's a bit of a mystery. But the others are still doing fine so it's good.
 

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